Bulls pack too much power for Connacht
Westerners’ challenge melts away in the heat of battle in Pretoria
SOUTH AFRICA World Cup winner Willie le Roux claimed a debut try as the Bulls cruised to a bonuspoint victory over Connacht who were unable to prolong their strong start to the season in sweltering Pretoria yesterday.
Full-back Le Roux, playing his first match since helping the Springboks retain the Webb Ellis Cup, was joined on the scoresheet by Akker van der Merwe, Elrigh Louw, Ruan Nortje, Nizaam Carr, David Kriel and Chris Smith.
Fly-half Jaco van der Walt added five conversions and two penalties for the dominant South African hosts.
Connacht hit back through tries from Diarmuid Kilgallen, Tadgh McElroy and Shamus Hurley-Langton, plus 10 points from Jack Carty, but were clearly second best.
Victory for the Bulls at Loftus Versfeld Stadium was a fourth from six URC fixtures this term, a record which matches that of Pete Wilkins’ outclassed side.
While the South African side handed a maiden appearance to veteran Le Roux following his fouryear spell with Japanese club Toyota Verblitz, the visitors remained without injured Ireland pair Bundee Aki, who was on Late Late Toy Show duty in Dublin on Friday night, and Mack Hansen.
Recalled Connacht captain Carty and rival number 10 Van der Walt exchanged early penalties before the hosts seized the initiative.
Hooker Van der Merwe claimed the opening try, benefiting from a series of fine offloads involving Sebastian de Klerk and captain Nortje to cross wide on the right.
Flanker Louw quickly added a second by powering over from close range after spotting a gap in Connacht’s defensive line.
The visitors were seeking another scalp on South African soil following last weekend’s single-point success over the Sharks in Durban.
Yet they were on the back foot for much of the opening period which the hosts ended with a convincing 32-13 advantage.
Following further penalties from former Scotland international Van der Walt and Carty, lock Nortje registered the Bulls’ third try with a simple finish after Zak Burger’s dummy broke the line. Connacht briefly responded when wing Kilgallen raced clear to touch down wide on the left.
But Le Roux quickly extinguished a potential momentum shift by collecting a stray pass from De Klerk to bag the bonus point on his landmark outing just before the break.
Bulls scrum-half Burger was denied a breakaway try early in the second period when the television match official spotted a cynical infringement in the build-up, which resulted in a yellow card for Van der Merwe.
Hooker McElroy then burrowed over as Connacht capitalised on the numerical advantage.
However, Connacht soon lost replacement back-row Conor Oliver to the sin-bin after he conceded a penalty which led to Bulls number eight Carr going over.
Kriel’s fifth URC try of the season, in the 66th minute, made the scoreline more emphatic before replacement fly-half Smith converted his own score, prior to Hurley-Langton’s late consolation for the westerners.
Connacht return to Galway today and their next game is against Leinster at the Sportsground on Saturday.